As part of the Missouri Music Educators Association Conference, six UMSL students performed in the Missouri All-Collegiate Orchestra. (Photo courtesy of Joanna Mendoza)
Last week, over 3,000 music educators and their students from across the state of Missouri gathered at the Tan-Tar-A Conference Center in the Lake of the Ozarks for the Missouri Music Educators Association Conference. From Jan. 27 to 31, the conference featured professional development sessions, performances by student ensembles and plenty of networking opportunities. And the University of Missouri–St. Louis was well-represented, featuring the highest number of selected musicians and leaders for a university of its size.
“It made me so proud to see so many of our students representing UMSL and the music department,” said Joanna Mendoza, the professor of viola and chair of UMSL’s Department of Music. “It is a real testament to the talented, hardworking students from in and outside St. Louis that we attract to our program, to our excellent faculty who create musical leaders and to the community we’ve built. We may be a small department by comparison to others, but we’re mighty. Such a strong presence makes students and teachers sit up and take notice that we have a competitive program and that UMSL has a good thing going.”
A highlight of the annual conference was a performance of Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition” by the Missouri All-Collegiate Orchestra on Jan. 28. UMSL was represented by six students, who were nominated for the orchestra by UMSL faculty members and earned leadership positions through auditions:
- Nanami Akeda: 1st Violin, Concertmaster
- Hannah Wilkins: 2nd Violin, Section
- Maya Combs: Viola, Assistant Principal
- Elisabeth Ragan: Viola, Section
- Emma Cheng: Cello, Section
- G Schmiedeke: Bass, Assistant Principal Bass
In addition to the UMSL students who performed with the Missouri All-Collegiate Orchestra, seven high school students enrolled in UMSL’s Dual Enrollment Program won seats in the All-State Honors Orchestra through auditions.
“Advanced students from across the state compete to win a spot in this orchestra,” Mendoza said. “It is a highly competitive process with blind auditions in December. For violinists alone, there were nearly 200 auditioning for 30 seats. The performances are so impressive.”
UMSL faculty members were also well-represented at the conference. High school bands and orchestras from across Missouri who auditioned and were selected to perform at the conference worked with David Wacyk, an assistant teaching professor of music at UMSL, to prepare for the performances. Corinne Stillwell, an associate professor of violin, adjudicated the violin auditions and worked with the first violin section throughout the conference.
Kurt Baldwin, a professor of cello, was named the Missouri Collegiate Educator of the Year. (Photo courtesy of Joanna Mendoza)
Notably, Kurt Baldwin, a professor of cello at UMSL, received the Missouri Collegiate Educator of the Year award at the conference. Baldwin was nominated by Daniel Henderson, the orchestra director at Clayton High School, who works closely with Baldwin and introduced him when he received the award. In his remarks, Henderson noted Baldwin’s work with the Arianna String Quartet, his consummate musicianship and his ability to connect with students and help them find success quickly.
“We have worked with virtually every high school orchestra in the greater St. Louis area,” Mendoza said. “Kurt is so highly respected and well-liked throughout the state. He is well-known among music directors and students for his excellent cello studio. His students, regardless of their age, win competitions and participate in nationally recognized summer programs. He attracts students and teachers to the UMSL campus for music department and cello-specific workshops like the UMSL Cello Choir and annual Cello Day. Anyone who knows Kurt knows he has a great sense of humor and an easy way with people. To find all this in a musician of his caliber is really unusual and special and so worthy of recognition.”
As part of the conference, UMSL alum Maria A. Ellis, who directs the Voices of Jubilation choir on campus, also directed the All-Stars Chorus from the Sheldon Concert Hall for the first performance in 60 years of a high school choir from the city of St. Louis. UMSL has participated in the Missouri Music Educators Association Conference since the department was first founded, and Mendoza hopes that UMSL’s strong representation this year – from students, faculty and alumni alike – will continue to strengthen the department for years to come.
“The MMEA Conference is a gathering place to share ideas and our work with students,” Mendoza said. “Many of our faculty have presented research, given clinics or master classes and directed performances. It’s a great place to nurture our relationships with other schools, teachers, students and alumni. Attendance at MMEA keeps UMSL’s profile prominent throughout the state.”
